It didn't matter that it wasn't Jim's fault, extricating their captain and other crew mates still involved transporting into a bar and fighting their way to a new transport location.
While Spock and a few other crewmen would even up the odds, Uhura got the unenviable task of making up with the locals presently pounding on Kirk, Sulu, Chekov and Cupcake. Why Jim couldn't be satisfied with celebrating Chekov's birthday on the Enterprise still frustrated Uhura. She had a feeling it had to do with the bar's exotic sexbots.
Unlike сигма [Sigma] Iotia, no one was shooting projectiles at them. Instead, the Enterprise crew got bombarded with tazer-like energy bursts. Thanks to slight differences in neuro-anatomy between the locals and the Enterprise's human crew, the weapons led to paralyzing episodes of laughter as the neurological "tickle" response got stimulated - that is, for everyone but Spock. Spock experienced a neural effect akin to scraping nails across a blackboard. The locals in the bar grew incensed, incorrectly concluding that the Star Fleet crew was laughing at them.
The First Officer's neural irritation expedited the end of the altercation. Spock dropped combatants at a rate almost equal to Uhura's normal production. With the conflict well in hand, Uhura moved on to smoothing the ruffled feathers, mostly by handing out Federation credit vouchers or the promise of access to Federation opportunities. As only she and Spock spoke the planet's native language (although all the bar combatants spoke Fed. Standard profanity and insults), Kirk herded the remaining crew back to the ship for medical treatment caused by prolonged laughing fits.
Uhura'd just revived one of the planet's council members (who Chekov decked by accident) when a small gaggle of drunk, brainless adolescent males took umbrage at the "advantages" the Federation had in the fight (said advantages coming down to being trained to fight).
Through their bond Spock suggested a course of action and Uhura nodded in consent.
Our captain seems unable to avoid conflict during away missions.
Spock nerve pinched the boy who swung at him, catching the kid's falling body and laying it gently on the floor out of the way.
That's what happens when you give a kid a star ship to play with.
Uhura unintentionally tagged an energetic young man in a reproductively tender location. She had no idea something that delicate could be stored in a male's chin.
Have you given our discussion about Earth any consideration? I would think the present circumstances might motivate such thoughts.
I have been thinking a lot about moving back to Earth... to our house -
Uhura tagged the next boy twice, spun him and nerve pinched him where Spock could catch him.
- and I think for now -
Spock redirected his young attacker's momentum in Uhura's direction and she dropped him in a single move. The boy crumpled like a hot air ballon with a hole in it.
I'd rather stay on the Enterprise. I really missed this.
With the bar situation mopped up, she returned to the Council Member and made an appointment for the next local day to discuss Federation purchases of the planet's raw metals. With a quick scan to ensure their exit would not be ambushed, she took Spock's arm.
As the grey sparkle of the transporter beam dematerialized them, Uhura heard a mental chuckle followed by smug words.
As I predicted, k'diwa.
finis - Uhura and the Career Change